Busting myths associated with bag ban

Opponents of asking people to pay for their own bags are struggling to find good reasons for their opinion. Here are the myths against the ordinance telling people to pay for the bags they are using:

Myth 1: Plastic grocery bags are free. a) Bags are manufactured in China, shipped here, then shipped back for recycling at huge financial and environmental cost. b) The cost of plastic bags is in our grocery bill. Everyone is paying for them. Even those of us not using them.

Myth 2: We are being forced to pay for free bags. a) Bags are not free. See Myth 1. b) No one is being forced to do anything. If you don’t want to pay for the bags, don’t use them.

Myth 3: There will be lawsuits. a) The only way our time and money will be wasted on lawsuits is if the opponents of asking people to pay for what they use decide to sue us. Solution: Just pay for your bags. Oh, and yeah, don’t sue our city just because you want everyone else to pay so you can have a “free” bag.

Myth 4: People will get sick from the E. coli in their reusable bag. a) Like people in most other Western countries, we can wash our bags.

Myth 5: Poor people will suffer. a) People receiving food assistance will not pay for bags.

Myth 6: Most people in Durango are against asking people to pay for bags they use. a) About 30 people spoke at the last City Council meeting. The vast majority favored the ordinance, and some wanted to see it expanded to all businesses. b) We gathered more than 1,000 signatures in favor of ending or reducing plastic bag usage.

Myth 7: The ordinance is symbolic only. a) With this ordinance, during the next 10 years, 50 million plastic bags will not go into landfills – just in Durango.

So folks, please just get on and pay for your bags if you want them, and let the rest of us get on with creating a healthy world for you and your future generations.